The Wine List: If You’re Lambrusco-Curious, Start with These Three Bottles

Stop us if you’ve heard this one: there’s a low-alcohol sparkling wine out there that comes from a faraway land, is reasonably priced and widely available, and pairs with almost everything. Need another hint? During the 1970s it was one the biggest-selling imported wines in North America.

That last fact is the reason you may still recoil at the word lambrusco. Back in the day, this import from Italy’s Emilia-Romagna was crafted in an overly sweet, berry-forward presentation that suited the over-indulged decade of Watergate and men getting perms.

The irony is that the lambrusco grape (actually, it’s a collection of related grapes but let’s not nerd out) is naturally high in acidity and, when the wine is made properly, it isn’t sweet at all but instead delivers red fruit across the spectrum while still keeping things tight on the acid front. That’s why it’s the darling of local somms across town who’ve adopted the wine as their own, making YVR a lambrusco hotbed.

Medici Ermete Concerto, $23

This organic wine is the pioneer of the new lambrusco because it undoes preconceptions on the first sip. It’s endlessly vibrant, with deep notes of violets and dark chocolate that cause the lips to smack in the best way. And its price has gone up all of $3 in the last decade, making it one of the great steals at the BCL.

Soliera Lambrusco di Sorbara, $21.50

Sorbara is both the highest in acidity and the lightest in colour of the lambrusco varieties. That means you get rosé bubbles that eschew any sense of sweetness in favour of a crunchy, just-ripe raspberry vibe that can start as an apertivo and work all the way through to a perfect pairing for a chocolate budino. Endlessly versatile.

Righi Grasparossa di Castelvetro, $28

This small wine region is located south in Modena in the shadow of the Ferrari factory in Maranello, and the wine itself is, fittingly, a bit more bold: broody, tannic and full bodied with more dark cherry and blackberries, but with a sneaky-low eight-percent alcohol. Vroom, vroom.